From the region

Friday

Jan 18, 2013 at 6:00 AM

PAXTON — Anna Maria College President Jack P. Calareso has signed a contract extension to keep him at the helm of the small Roman Catholic liberal arts school until 2017.

Under the terms of the pact, Mr. Calareso, 61, will continue with his full-time duties for four years. During the fifth year of the contract, he will consult, teach and undertake other projects assigned by the board of trustees and the new president.

Mr. Calareso would leave the institution with 11 years of service.

“We are particularly grateful and blessed that President Calareso has opted to lead the AMC community for the next five years,” said Sister Yvette E. Bellerose, the board’s chairman. “His leadership inspires commitment and exemplifies the best practices and strategies for Catholic higher education today.”

Sister Bellerose said that under Mr. Calareso’s leadership, the college has grown “significantly” and sits on sound financial footing, despite the tough economy.

According to college officials, enrollment at the school has doubled and the endowment has increased to at least $4 million since Mr. Calareso took over in 2007.

Additionally, several new programs have been established for undergraduate and graduate students. Mr. Calareso has also overseen the construction of three residence halls and an all-purpose athletic field. Under his tutelage, school engagement with the community has increased, online academic programs have been added and the college’s technological capabilities have been boosted.

Mr. Calareso thanked the board, faculty and staff for their support.

He said much has been accomplished over the past five years but added that more needs to be done.

Anna Maria is a co-educational college that was founded in 1946 by the Sisters of St. Anne. It sits on 192 acres and has an enrollment of 1,462.

RUTLAND — Police are looking for the driver of a late-model white or silver Chevy Silverado truck that they believe crashed into two utility poles at Maple Avenue (Route 56) and Prescott Street and then kept going about 12:45 Thursday morning.

The poles were damaged, and the power lines were on fire on the ground. Almost 400 National Grid customers lost power, and a number of homes also lost cable service. Utility crews worked overnight to make repairs.

Witnesses told police that it appeared the truck was headed north on Maple Avenue, crossed into the southbound lane, hit the two poles and kept going toward Main Street (Route 122A). Although the truck’s front end was badly damaged, the driver continued east on Wachusett Street toward Route 68 after the crash, witnesses said.

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call Rutland police at (508) 886-4033.

SOUTHBRIDGE — A local man was found guilty of two counts of indecent assault and battery on a person 14 years or older in Dudley District Court.

Shawn J. Vello, 34, of 91 Pine St. 34, was arrested last January when his accuser told police and investigators that he began inappropriately touching her in 2009, when he would drive her behind the Big Y shopping plaza and the West Street soccer field in Southbridge.

The girl reported that a month before his arrest, Mr. Vello drove her to a spot behind a mill on Mill Street and sexually assaulted her.

Mr. Vello told her he was doing these things to her so she would know how to do them to other boys, according to a police report

Last month, Mr. Vello was placed on probation for 2 years for two counts of indecent assault and battery on a person 14 years or older. In addition, he was ordered to stay away and have no contact with the victim, to have no unsupervised contact with a child under 16, to complete sex offender counseling and submit to a GPS monitoring system.

Judge Timothy M. Bibaud dismissed two counts of indecent assault and battery on a child under the age of 14. One of the counts of indecent assault and battery on a person 14 years old or older that Mr. Vello was found guilty of, was amended from rape of a child with force.